West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1887-11-04
HAMPERS FERRY LETTER.
November 1st, 1887.


We have received but few compli
ments in our time for the very good
reason, we suppose, that we have not
deserved many, and we blame no
body. There have been exceptional
occasions, however, when we were
commended, and we treasure the
memory of these encomiums good
deal on account of the rarity of such
occurrences with us, but still more
because of the acknowledged good
Judgment of our eulogists. About
a year ago the editor of 1.-THE Free
Press" for instance, referring to
literary effort of ouls on an abstruse
subject, remarked that we could
elicit something interesting from
even dry chip. We wish the COM
pliment was well deserved, for we
are now sorely in need of the gift
which our old friends partiality at
tributed to US, and, if he but knew
the aridity of our present resources,
he would hardly stand our sponsor
for this weeks letter. The stagna-
ton of news which we complained
of in our last is now aggravated by
the cold weather which keeps many
people indoors, and, besides, there
is such thing as exhausting the
inventive powers of the most imag-
NATIVE romancer, to use no harsher
expression. But, as we are in for it
and stern necessity is the driver, we
must TRY it, at least, and, as even
an Angel can do no more than his
best, it would be unreasonable to ex
pect more from Bohemian Irish
man.
Almost any day last week We
could see flights of wild geese pass
ing overhead on their way to winter
headquarters, and one flock consid-
cradle in number circled around our
shanty in a manner noticeable for
the great length of time occupied in
their gyrations, the proximity of
those usually shy birds to a human
habitation and the vociferous en-
phasis of their screams. Now, be
it known that we are the proud own
err of gun of prodigious length and
most covernous bore, which is ca
pable of discharging at once about
a peck of ck-shot, and the fact
that the geese did not appear to
dread its deadly effects revived an
old Joke which was at one time cur
rent at our expense, to the effect
that we once shot at the Courthouse
and only succeeded IN hitting the
County. We scorn the malicious
and stupid buffoon just as we would
the parings of Satan's hoof, and we
Justly attribute the confidence and
familiarity exhibited by the intelli
gent birds not to insolent defiance
but to a sense of obligation for the
eloquent appeal we made, last week,
in behalf of so-called inferior ami
mails. The geese, we are convinced,
desired to give us the first warning
of the cold wave which the papers.
next day, reported as being on the
way from the home of eternal snow,
or it may be that they wished to re-
mind US, for future use in defending
their claims for more consideration,
that they alone have solved the mys-
terry of the ice bound Arctic regions,
and that, every year, THEY accom-
plish task which poor, feeble man
with all his boosted science has
hitherto failed to achieve THEY
know if there an open Sea near the
Pole, and THEY could have found and
perhaps DID discover Sir John
Franklin without having to push
their way through ice foes or eat
one another in extremity of hunger
like some human searchers for the
great secret. 1t may be, too, but
we mention it in confidence and to
YOU ALONE, that they recognized in
us a brother of their tribe-a silly,
old creature that apes the frolics of
school-boy when he ought to de
port himself with THE gravity of a
sexagenarian, but we would not adj
nit this to general public.
Y. X.